This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
I am very concerned about the upper and lower ball joints on my 2003 Jeep Liberty. I have 26, 000 miles on this vehicle and the ball joints seem to have failed. I am choosing to replace them with what I hope will be a better quality product.
2004 Jeep Liberty, ball joint broke, wheel fell off, had to replace front lower ball joint, wheel, & right axle shaft. Only had 52,000 miles. The factory did pay 50% of repair. I had complained to dealer during warranty period that I heard a noise when going over speed bumps in the front right passenger side and that the vehicle veered to the right. After repair I no longer hear the noise and the vehicle does not veer to the right.
My wifes car is a 2004 Jeep Liberty sport [xxx], and she is the main driver of this vehicle. On March 31st 2006 I decided to take her car to Michigan that day. When I got in it I noticed that the steering was not right. The problem was that it seemed like you really had to work at keeping it going straight down the road. When turning the vehicle it didn't want to straighten back out like most cars do. You actually had to turn the wheel to get it going back in a straight direction again. I decided I needed to stop and have a trained service technician look at the vehicle that morning. When I got there and explained the problem to the maintenance man he said lets take it for a test drive. He stated that he didn't see a problem with the vehicle going down the road but did notice it was a little hard to turn. He stated that they couldn't look at it that day, so he scheduled for me to bring it by on Wednesday April 5th which was 5 days after I had taken it by. He assured me everything was okay and that it was alright to drive. On April 4, 2006 my wife called me at 9:05 a.M. to let me know that the car had broken down. I asked her what was wrong, and she stated that she barely got it into the ymca parking lot where she was dropping off my 3 year old for preschool. When it broke my wife said the vehicle dropped like she had a blow out. The wrecker stated that it was a broken ball joint and could not believe this since there is only 24,000 miles on the vehicle. Thank god this happened at a slow rate of speed instead of going down the highway at 65 mph with my three year old and seven year old sons in the car. They could very well put another defective part on this vehicle, and I am terrified to put my family back into this car since there has been no recall or retro fit. The next time could cost my family their lives. I hope this issue can be resolved safely before someone gets seriously hurt. The Liberty is at shop waiting for repair.
I was entering the interstate from an entrance ramp. At the top of the ramp, I heard a loud pop & steering became difficult. I pulled out of traffic next to a concrete wall and stopped to check if I had a tire blow-out. Upon seeing the tires were okay, my husband got into the vehicle, put it into gear and began to drive it. Within 3 feet, the ball joint assembly apparently gave way & the left front of the vehicle fell, resting on the top of the tire. We were stranded for about an hour at the entrance ramp/interstate connection in a severe thunderstorm, praying for our lives. I am diabetic, and the stress caused my blood sugar to rise and I went into tachycardia. Fortunately, I had medication with me and did not have to go to a hospital. Aaa sent a flatbed wrecker to take the vehicle to a nearby dealer who, after Jeep refused to replace the parts at their expense, repaired the Jeep using our previously purchased extended warranty. I do not know if the old parts are available.
- Louisville, KY, USA
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This 2004 Jeep Liberty sport was moving less than 5 mph in a parking lot when the left front ball joint fell apart, damaging the axle and pushing the left front tire into the wheel well at an angle. The failure resulted in driver having no steering control and the vehicle was towed to the dealer. Front left ball joint and axle replaced under drive train warranty with $50 deductible. This problem in this model is under NHTSA investigation and we think a recall is needed.
While driving into a gas station (before entering the expressway) my wheel came off on the front passenger's side of the vehicle. The vehicle lunged forward, the wheel fell off and fluids leaked out of the vehicle. Luckily this didn't happen on the expressway. Reliable?
: the contact stated the front driver's side of the vehicle fell on the ground while backing out a parking space. The vehicle was towed to an independent repair shop, where it was determined the driver's side lower ball joint needed to be replaced. There is NHTSA recall, # 03V460000, regarding the lower ball joints. The vehicle has the same problems as indicated in the recall; however, it is not included in the recall due to the VIN. The contact indicated that it was the front driver's side lower ball joint that broke apart. However, he replaced both the driver's side and passenger's side ball joints because he believed that the passenger's side would also break apart.
Ball joint failure. Vehicle pulling to the right. Squeaking/squealing noises. Took vehicle for wheel alignment and found out that the ball joints were bad. Black soot substance continually coating hub cab of front passenger side wheel.
I had about 35,000 miles on my 2004 Jeep Liberty when I heard about a lower ball joint issue affecting newer liberties. I had my lower ball joints inspected and found that they each had about half an inch of play. After taking the car over to the Jeep dealership they replaced the units under warranty. However, they stated that they replaced the units with the same model as what was on the Jeep before. So I guess in another 35,000 miles I'll be looking at replacing these again.
With no warning whatsoever, the left front lower ball joint on my vehicle broke while I was backing out of a parking space. The vehicle did not make any unusual noises nor were there any noticeable problems prior to the part breaking. When the ball joint broke, the wheel was also damaged. When I had the vehicle towed into a Jeep dealer, I was informed that there was a recall on 2003 Jeep Liberty's for this problem, but no recall had been issued on the 2004 model. The mechanics at the dealership told me that this part should be expected to last much more than the 1 year, 9 months & 40,000 miles of my vehicle life. My extended warranty covered the cost of replacing both front ball joints (except for a $100 deductible) and I had to pay to replace the damaged wheel. ($317.55). We were away from home and had stopped for something to eat at the time this happened. Just think of the possibilities if we were enroute or returning via the expressways at speeds between 55 and 70 mph. I have contacted daimler/Chrysler customer care and they seem unwilling to discuss this possible defect on this vehicle.
The driver side front lower ball joint failed on my 2004 Jeep Liberty. The vehicle has 29,000 miles on it. There was a loud pop while revising into a parking spot. I got out to investigate to find that the driver side front lower ball joint failed and was now sitting on the inside rim of the tire. The vehicle was towed to the dealer for repairs.
On March 11, 2006, I was driving my 2004 Jeep, Liberty into the driveway of my home. As I crossed the threshold of the driveway I heard a loud pop. I parked my vehicle and inspected the passenger side of the vehicle. I saw the suspension system on the ground and the tire turned outward. I called for a wrecker and when the vehicle was moved we could see that the suspension separated at the ball of the joint. On the ground along the path that the vehicle traveled was small metal shavings. I took photographs of the vehicle and collected the shavings.
: the contact stated while the vehicle was parked, the driver side front ball joint fractured and broke. The vehicle was found sitting on the tire on the driver's side. The vehicle was towed to the dealer for repairs.
The driver side front lower ball joint failed on my 2004 Jeep Liberty columbia edition. The vehicle has 67,000 miles on it. Failure occurred while making a low speed left turn pulling out from a parking spot. Vehicle was left stranded in the middle off the road with the suspension bearing its full weight on the driver side inner cv joint.
: the contact stated while reversing out of a driveway at 3 mph, the passenger front lower ball joint fractured and broke. The vehicle was towed into the local dealership for inspection and repair. Updated 3/9/2006 -
Purchased 2004 Jeep Liberty in March 2005 (Liberty has a build date of 01-04) and after alignment it has progressively gotten harder to control on the highway, changed tires, checked alignment. Found out that the ball joints are worn and one is worn almost to separation. Fortunately I found this before it separated. I have been told by Jeep that they have never seen this problem, the Jeep now has 49000 miles and of course is out of factory warranty and they act as though it has "high mileage" causing this problem. Upon investigation I found that I'm not the only 2004 Liberty with this problem, appears that the 02-04 all have the same problem.
While exiting rt 2 off the exit ramp the ball joint in my front left tire separated. Luckily I was preparing to stop at a light and had slowed to about 10 mph when this occurred. Upon examination it was found that the right front ball joint is also in need of repair, however the part was back ordered by two weeks.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Las Vegas , NV, USA